Nebraska Tops Extra Inning Softball Transfer Portal Impact Classes

Student-athletes across the country are returning to campus and will soon set their focus on softball in preparation for the 2024 season.

Freshmen will be learning the balance between academics and athletics, while returning players will be putting in the work that they hope will ultimately result in a championship season.

Another group of student-athletes also will be making their way to school and that is players who have arrived via the transfer portal. This group has the task of integrating themselves into a new environment with new teammates and coaches with the hope of making an immediate impact in their new surroundings.

Extra Inning Softball breaks down the transfer portal classes and ranks them according to the impact they could have in the 2024 season.

1. Nebraska Cornhuskers

Head coach Rhonda Revelle secured the gem of the transfer portal when former Oklahoma pitcher Jordy Bahl elected to return to her home state and finish her career with the Huskers. Bahl immediately makes Nebraska a serious postseason threat and the Cornhuskers could make their first Women’s College World Series appearance since 2013 behind the arm and bat of the two-time All-American selection. Revelle also added Peyton Cody (St. John’s) and Bella Bacon (Purdue) from the portal.

2. South Carolina Gamecocks

The Gamecocks had already secured a top-five transfer portal class before Alana Vawter (Stanford, pictured below) elected to travel across the country to join the South Carolina program, but with her addition this becomes an elite group. Vawter gives South Carolina an ace in the circle who should have no trouble adjusting to life in the Southeastern Conference after playing for four seasons in the Pac-12. Head coach Beverly Smith also brings Kianna Jones (North Carolina), Denver Bryant (Auburn), Kiki Estrada (Arkansas) and Bre Warren (Texas A&M) to Columbia.

3. Arkansas Razorbacks

Razorback head coach Courtney Deifel continues to reap rewards from the transfer portal as she welcomes four players to Arkansas for the 2024 season. Bri Ellis (Auburn) and Nia Carter (Iowa) will add firepower to the Arkansas lineup, while Reis Beuerlein (Mississippi State) and Morgan Leinstock (Southern Mississippi) will be important additions in the circle. While Ellis has garnered much of the attention, do not sleep on how much of an impact Carter will have on this team.

4. Oklahoma Sooners

Oklahoma head coach Patty Gasso may have just been a casual observer in the portal this offseason with the bulk of the 2023 national championship team returning in 2024. But when Jordy Bahl, Sophia Nugent and Jocelyn Erickson departed, she reacted by enticing All-American pitcher Kelly Maxwell (Oklahoma State) to swap sides in Bedlam as the cornerstone of her incoming class. Karlie Keeney (Liberty) and Paytn Monticelli (Wisconsin) join Maxwell as members of a loaded pitching staff, while Riley Ludlam (Furman) will provide the Sooners with another solid bat in an already dangerous lineup.

5. Ole Miss Rebels

Ole Miss head coach Jamie Trachsel’s work in the transfer portal has yielded positive results previously and there was no change this year as she welcomes five players to Oxford. Big South Player of the Year Jaden Pone (Longwood) brings a big bat and plenty of speed to the Rebels lineup, while Courtney Day (Texas) played on a Texas team that advanced to the championship series of the WCWS in 2022 and a Super Regionals in 2023. Ryan Starr (Syracuse) and Delaney Rummell (Illinois) will help to solidify the Ole Miss infield and Brianna Lopez (Hawai’i) is an excellent addition in the circle.

6. Louisiana Rajin’ Cajuns

After compiling a 50-16 record and advancing to the Super Regionals last season, Louisiana head coach Gerry Glasco hardly stood still. He dove into the transfer portal and secured four pieces that will greatly aid in the Rajin’ Cajuns quest to win their fifth consecutive Sun Belt title. A pair of Florida transfers headline the group as pitcher Lexie Delbrey and catcher Sam Roe join the fold, while two-way player Denali Loecker (Iowa) and infielder Brooke Ellestad (St. Thomas) round out the quartet.

7. Alabama Crimson Tide

Crimson Tide head coach Patrick Murphy knew he had some work to do with the graduation of Montana Fouts and Ally Shipman and the departure of Aubrey Barnhart who entered the transfer portal. And get to work he did as he brought in a class that features pitchers Kayla Beaver (Central Arkansas) and Alea Johnson (LSU) as well as Riley Valentine (Texas A&M) and Kinely Pate (Samford) to bolster the lineup.

8. Stanford Cardinal

I can hear it already. How can adding one player justify being ranked? If that player is Taryn Kern (Indiana, pictured below) I can make the case that her impact upon the Cardinal program will be significant. In four games at the Women’s College World Series last year Stanford allowed just six runs yet went 2-2 because they only scored five runs. After earning Big Ten Player and Freshman of the Year honors last season, Kern will be making her way to The Farm and bringing her 23 homers, 68 RBIs and a .404 batting average with her.

9. North Carolina Tar Heels

First-year head coach Megan Smith Lyon wasted little time in bolstering her new team in Chapel Hill and she didn’t have far to look for her additions. Catcher Autumn Owen and outfielder Alex Coleman joined Smith Lyon making the transition from Marshall to North Carolina. Owen earned All-American honors last season after hitting .444 with 19 home runs and 71 RBIs, while Coleman hit .427 and ranked fifth nationally with 79 hits. Smith Lyon then dipped into the SEC to bring Georgia pitcher Britton Rogers to UNC.

10. Oklahoma State Cowgirls

While this class may not jump out at you, we have learned through the years that Oklahoma State head coach Kenny Gajewski has a record of bringing the right players to Stillwater. Players that impact his program and have helped OSU reach the WCWS four consecutive times. The player that does jump out at you is two-time Atlantic Sun Player of the Year Caroline Hudson (Liberty, pictured below). The catcher led the ASUN with 15 homers and 51 RBIs last year and helped lead Liberty to an at-large berth in the NCAA Tournament. Infielder Macy Graf (Mississippi State) and utility player Jil Poullard (McNeese) also will be wearing Cowgirl orange this season.

Also in the discussion: Tennessee Volunteers, Clemson Tigers, Georgia Bulldogs, Texas A&M Aggies, Florida Gators, Houston Cougars, Washington Huskies

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